Phoebe Gates' App Phia Working to Offer Refunds After Payment Scandal

Key Points:

• Phia, a shopping startup co-founded by Bill Gates' daughter Phoebe, is facing backlash after a Bloomberg report revealed it earned commissions on sales it did not influence, leading to damage control efforts.
• The company is working with affiliate network Impact.com to refund affected parties and correct sales attributions, with Impact.com reprocessing transactions from June 20 to July 29 and temporarily suspending Phia from its marketplace.
• Other affiliate networks like Rakuten Advertising and CJ Affiliate are investigating or making reconciliation payments to address tracking errors linked to Phia's activities.
• The incident has shaken trust in Phia, which launched in 2025 and raised $43.5 million from investors, with experts warning the attribution issues could seriously harm the startup's reputation in the affiliate marketing industry.
• Despite the controversy, Phia's founders have not publicly addressed the problem, a move criticized by communications experts as a missed opportunity to maintain trust through transparency.